After leaving Sonic's hideout, Caspian stopped by a store, then soared above Z-City's Ghost Town. He floated over the massive crater Sage Centipede had left behind; a wound in the earth, sable and yawning.
He closed his eyes and activated 'Sense.' Monsters still roamed below, but only a few mattered. Orochi, still alive, crawled through the Monster Association Base, devouring anything in his path. He could stay. If Boros spared him, Caspian saw no reason to step in. Evil Natural Water barely stirred. And finally—
He opened a transparent bag filled with thick, juicy steaks. She will get her companion no matter what. He created a 'Hyperspace Gate' and stepped into a quiet, oval-shaped coliseum.
"Rover… sorry for disciplining you earlier."
The six-eyed pup, now shrunken, looked up and flinched. A platinum-hued leg dangled from his mouth.
"Can you change your size at will?" Caspian knelt and patted his thigh, then dumped the steaks onto the white stone floor. "Either way, you don't want to eat something that arrogant. Try these."
Rover sniffed the air, yipped, and sprinted over before tearing into the meat.
"Good boy." Caspian ran a hand through the canine's shaggy fur.
A minute passed. Rover finished and looked up, head tilted.
He spread out his arms and waited.
Rover responded in kind, leaping into his chest, tongue out, licking his face with unfiltered affection. The sheer weight of his joy nearly knocked Caspian off balance.
How could anyone's mood not improve around him?
Setting the pup down, he said, "One more stop. Then I'll take you to your new home. Ready?"
Rover barked and ran in excited circles.
After spawning another gate, they appeared in a corridor deep within the Monster Association Base. The hallway was empty, unmarked except for a huge mass of water with a pair of eyes floating inside.
Evil Natural Water.
Rover trotted around and began pawing at something on the ground, tail twitching. He rolled on his back, then bounced upright again.
The water monster didn't move. It didn't attack. It just… watched.
Caspian narrowed his eyes and summoned two big 'Hyperspace Gates,' one on either side of Evil Natural Water.
That got a reaction as a refreshing jet of water blasted his face.
He blinked, unbothered, then clapped his hands. "'Shut.'" Instantly, the two portals slammed together and vanished. Sealing Evil Natural Water in a pocket dimension until he decided on what to do with it.
Rover padded over to the puddle around his feet and lapped it up.
"Time to go."
¤ ¤ ¤
Genos exited the forest and stood at the edge of Z-City's forsaken west side. Ruined buildings stretched out in all directions like empty shells.
He glanced down. On his phone, a map with a single red dot pinged his Master's last known location.
I hope I'm not too late.
He dashed through numerable streets, intersections, and alleys; then stopped. There, on the sidewalk, sat Caspian's phone.
The realization struck him at once. His master hadn't dropped his phone.
It wasn't a mistake. It was a farewell.
Caspian had discarded his last connection to the modern world: He had shed everything tethering him to civilization. A deliberate choice.
For he had chosen the despicable path of blade and shadow.
I was too late…
But he refused to accept it. Refused to surrender to that truth. If someone had driven Caspian to this, if someone had helped push him away. Then they would answer for it. And he knew exactly held the blame.
His 'Hyper Sensors' triggered.
Above, on the roof of the building in front of him, a figure crouched.
That ninja!
Genos raised both arms. Heat surged through his core. Flames ignited in his palms before he unleashed twin beams of searing energy; engulfing the building in a blinding inferno.
"Homing Exploding Shuriken!"
A sudden voice from above. Dozens of shuriken rained down, spiraling in unpredictable arcs, tracking his movements.
Genos' upgraded 'Multidirectional Evasive Boosters' burst into life. He launched backward, veering into a narrow alley. The shurikens missed him by inches and lodged into the alley's walls. Resulting in a thunderous chain of detonations that shook the street.
He shot out the other end of the alley and scanned the street ahead, spotting his mortal enemy.
The ninja's long purple scarf whipped around him in the wake of the blast.
"Did you follow Caspian here?" Sonic asked, voice tight, low, and bitter. "I was already in a foul mood. Now you've destroyed my favorite hideout." His hand hovered near his blade's hilt. "Your death won't alleviate my fury. But it'll help."
Genos didn't bother with words. Talking to someone like him would serve no purpose.
He lifted one hand.
"'Incinerate.'"
¤ ¤ ¤
The first thing Shadow Ring saw as she broke from the trees was a building getting obliterated by a beam of fire.
She froze for only a second. Then she rushed forward.
Pain stabbed through her body with every step, but she pushed past it. Her instincts screamed at her to turn back, yet she kept moving straight toward the blast zone.
By the time she arrived and scaled one of the ruined rooftops, the smoke and dust had settled. Two figures stood in the street below. One was unmistakably Genos. While the other she recognized at once.
'Speed-o'-Sound Sonic.'
A name etched deep into her memory… He ranked near the top of the 'Culling Catalog.'
So she had been right. Genos did have ties to the 'Ninja Village' — archenemies of the 'Abandoned Masses.'
What are they doing?
"'Incinerate.'" His word called forth a beam of concentrated fire from his palm. It vaporized everything in its path, swallowing Sonic in the blaze.
Shadow Ring's fists clenched. The fact she wouldn't have been able to dodge that only stung her pride. He could've ended her in a wink; but hadn't.
Metal clashed, too fast for her eyes to follow.
Genos now stood with arms crossed, twin blades extended from both forearms. His weapons clashed against Sonic's ninjato, which had appeared behind him in a flash.
"I will not let my guard down."
"Tch." Sonic leapt back, relaxed his stance, and said, "'Four Shadows Burial.'" Four afterimages blurred to life, moving in perfect sync: fast, erratic, circling the cyborg like wolves.
Genos didn't hesitate. Boosters fired. He blitzed frontward before launching himself into the air.
Both of their voices resounded in unison.
"'Scattered Flash Slash!'"
"'Dual Blade Rush!'"